U.S. Secretary of Labor Visits SUNY's Monroe Community College

September 24, 2012

Highlights $14.6 million grant awarded to SUNY community colleges

Rochester – U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today visited Monroe Community College’s Applied Technologies Center to celebrate and highlight a $14.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to a consortium of State University of New York community colleges.

Secretary Solis was hosted by SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher and MCC President Anne M. Kress. Community leaders in business development and advanced manufacturing, as well as elected officials, also took part in the visit.

“This federal support will help grow SUNY’s already powerful capacity to prepare students for careers in high-tech and advanced manufacturing fields where there is such a high demand in New York and across the country,” said Chancellor Zimpher. “Secretary Solis’ visit to Monroe highlights SUNY’s potential to bring these innovative solutions to scale across the state. I applaud our congressional delegation for working so diligently in securing these funds and for their continued partnership and recognition of SUNY’s ability to drive economic development and job growth across New York.”

“Monroe Community College is proud to lead this initiative coordinating all 30 SUNY community colleges in preparing more New Yorkers for viable advanced manufacturing careers,” said Kress. “This investment by the U.S. Department of Labor in our system will help us develop innovative educational programming along career pathways so that individuals can find good jobs today and even better careers tomorrow.”

The grant, issued as part of the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program, will allow the consortium of all SUNY community colleges to design, implement, and deliver a strategic approach to job training and education for high-need industries such as nanotechnology and advanced manufacturing.

“By maximizing the collective power of the system of community colleges, nearly 3,000 displaced workers will return to high-wage, 21st century advanced manufacturing jobs,” said Johanna Duncan-Poitier, SUNY Senior Vice Chancellor for Community Colleges and the Education Pipeline. “This represents yet another avenue for our extensive network of industry partners to work with us in strengthening our state and local economies by creating jobs and hiring right here in New York.”

The Manufacturers Alliance of New York (MANY) and the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), along with 150 other industry associations and employers across the state, have joined with the SUNY collaborative as key partners to validate curricula, develop and implement learn and earn strategies, raise awareness of the industry sector, and facilitate job placement. Manufacturers of all sizes and their representing associations will be involved from project design to implementation to placement and employment for eligible workers.

Todd Oldham, Vice President, Economic Development and Innovative Workforce Services, Monroe Community College

Javier Ayala, Dean, Career Technical Education, Monroe Community College

Jim Sydor, President and Owner, Sydor Optics *

Johanna Duncan-Poitier, Senior Vice Chancellor for Community Colleges and the Education Pipeline, Statue University of New York

Michael Frame, Director of Federal Relations, State University of New York

Diane Cecero, General Counsel/Government Relations, Monroe Community College

David Dahrsnin, student, Monroe Community College

About the State University of New YorkThe State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, with 64 college and university campuses located within 30 miles of every home, school and business in the state. In 2015–16, SUNY served nearly 1.3 million students, including nearly 600,000 in credit-bearing courses and programs and more than 700,000 through continuing education and community outreach programs. SUNY students and faculty across the state make significant contributions to research and discovery, resulting in nearly $1 billion of externally sponsored activity each year. There are 3 million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu.